Halifax filmmaker Jon Mann is the only Canadian chosen to screen his Stephen King adaptation at a celebration of King’s ‘Dollar Babies’ program at The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures this November.
FULL DETAILS:
New Brunswick-born, Halifax-based director Jon Mann’s film Popsy has been selected for a screening at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. He is the only Canadian filmmaker selected for this prestigious screening.
Six films have been chosen for the Academy’s celebration of the 47-year history of Stephen King’s “Dollar Baby” film program — which was an arrangement with the beloved author who would grant aspiring filmmakers permission to adapt his short stories into film for just a $1.
The program ran from 1976-2023.
“Mr. King’s generosity through the Dollar Baby program changed my life as a filmmaker. To have Popsy invited to screen at the Academy Museum alongside a handful of other adaptations from this 47-year legacy is both humbling and surreal,” Jon Mann said.
Mann’s film, released in 2018, is based on King’s short story Popsy from the 1993 collection Nightmares and Dreamscapes.
The unnerving film starring Rob Ramsay and Avery Winters-Anthony was filmed in Fredericton, N.B., and was described by Andrew Rausch, author of The Stephen King Movie Quiz Book, as “a superb gem of a film that excels in every way imaginable.”
In 3 weeks: The @paristheaternyc and the @academymuseum Branch Selects Series bring you @stephenking King Dollar Baby shorts, selected by @theacademy ’s Short Films Branch❗️
Saturday, May 23 at 11am*
Tuesday, May 26 at 7pm, 2026
*May 23 includes filmmaker Q&A with @jonnymann , @jackierageperez , @sondermannfilms , @y_weinstein , and @seawerner
🔗/film/stephen-king-dollar-babies-shorts-branch-selects
#shortfilms #stephenking #nyc #dollarbaby #paristheater shortfilmsbranch
Selected by the @theacademy Short Films Branch, six films from Stephen King’s Dollar Babies Shorts 47-year program are back at New York’s @paristheaternyc May 23-26 🎈
See you in New York!
Here’s How EP42 | Dropping Saturday Jan 31st!
EP42 sits down with Jon Mann, a Canadian writer-director and producer whose work spans narrative film, documentary, and television.
The conversation explores storytelling, the creative process behind film and documentaries, and what it takes to build a career across multiple formats in the Canadian film industry.
From international festival screenings to award-winning projects and adapting Stephen King’s Popsy, this episode digs into creativity, persistence, and life behind the camera.
Available on YouTube & Spotify tomorrow!
Here’s How.
“The best way to get rid of your nightmares is to give them to someone else.”
Having the opportunity to share Popsy with @theacademy alongside this incredible group of filmmakers is something I will carry forever.
I’m grateful to the @academymuseum for giving horror a space to roar, @bgproudfoot for his constant inspiration, my family for supporting me, and @stephenking for sharing his gift.
Curtain’s up.
Kickstart Connections is back, and this past Monday we welcomed Jon Mann (the first ever guest of BNV Media’s first podcast Brand New View!) — filmmaker, storyteller, and creator of the award-winning short film Popsy, based on a Stephen King story.
Popsy is being honoured next week at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures where the Academy will be honouring 5 Stephen King shorts that were created through the Dollar Baby program.
Marc and Jon dig into the creative process behind horror filmmaking, why fear connects audiences universally, and how Mann’s Atlantic roots helped shape his voice. Jon also teases his latest project, Sweetie — a new horror feature exploring the next chapter of his storytelling evolution.
In this clip, Jon talks about the legend of the Dollar Baby Program and how he wasn’t exactly sure it was a real thing until Popsy became a reality!
Check out the full episode on YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts!
#popsy #stephenkingshort #populardemandpictures #kickstartconnections #novascotiamfilm #screenovascotia #aiff #stephenkingmovie #filmdirector #filmpodcast #entrepreneurship #halifaxbusiness
